am'nýer—a'
T
ARTIFACTS
The Artifacts of Tam'nýer—a' vary greatly in shape and size. Scattered throughout the land, they are believed to be the missing parts of the Gods that fell from them when they died. Taking into consideration that the skies are generally where the people of Tam'nýer—a' believe the Gods reside, despite being dead, these pieces are priceless. An artifact, therein a 'missing part of a God' that the God's corpse is now separated from, is of immeasurable value.
Nations would kill to have them, some more so than most. The Ṅkhya'jra believe without a doubt that piecing together all of these artifacts will restore the Gods to be part of the living once more, gain favor with them, and rebirth the world of Tam'nýer—a' entirely. Another reason artifacts are so precious lies more effectively in the present and that is within a radius of them, magic can be what it once was when the Gods were among us; juggling fire without props at festivals, children blowing bubbles of aether.
Artifacts increase the quality of life as well. If you find yourself to be in the propensities of age such as arthritis, the ebbing power of an artifact will make you feel as if in your prime again. Think of it; passing away in peace with no natural pain. However, there are whispers on the wind that some feel no pain at all, even if they hurt themselves, which can be dangerously deceiving as one may begin to feel invincible. Some, too, may find themselves becoming whimsically optimistic, or deranged with delusions of grandeur. Whether people notice or not is a different matter entirely, but one thing is for certain, some people are more susceptible than others, and the power of the artifacts corrupts just as much as they help. Alas, without artifacts, one must travel the road without such luxuries, and magic is merely a husk of what it used to be, relying on basic talisman enchantments, or the mastery of apothecaries.
Artifacts have a hum to them, a feeling on the wind, if you would. If you are in tune and at peace with the natural world around you, you may feel a pull. If you are devout, you may feel this pull. Think of both of these states of 'being at peace' and being devout, as our Earthly concept of being 'enlightened'. If you are 'enlightened', you will feel the pull of an artifact within the distance of a mile. If however, your character is not devout or 'at peace', you will feel a natural pull, as every creature and being does, in the range of 30-50 feet.
The Ṅkhya'jra have a much easier time locating artifacts because their entire culture is built around the restoration of the Gods. They are brought up in a culture for this one goal, making them more attuned to this struggle. However, yes, there are still exceptions to the rule with some Ṅkhya'jra who feel no pull whatsoever, despite their beliefs, unless of course within close enough proximity to one.
As aforementioned, the artifacts vary in size; some may fit in the palm of one's hand, but some are too big to extract. In this case, the nations will have to decide whether to build a fortified city around it in order to protect it and keep it for themselves or simply put funding towards keep watch on it. Abandoning an artifact once discovered is never an option due to their importance.
When artifacts are brought together, they resonate, as if one voice from an artifact now harmonizes with another lost voice tucked away in another artifact. Together they create a Chorus, which in turn enlarges the proximity in which the hum is felt.
As strong as the Ṅkhya'jra's belief is about the artifacts, so much so that it has become their raison d'être, they are unfortunately immeasurably wrong. While they are correct in believing that the artifacts are parts of the Gods' bodies, their assumption that restoring the artifacts will bring the Gods back to life and be grateful for their dedication and efforts is far off the mark. The truth is that the Gods did not actually die, but evolved to no longer require a physical body.
If the Ṅkhya'jra are indeed successful in their quest to restore the artifacts, the Gods will actually be forced to de-evolve, thus being stuck in a physical shell once more, trapped. This may even cause Tam'nýer—a' to implode.
KNOWN ARTIFACTS
Q'Tam'šmă's Grief:
Status: FOUND
Location: Ãoni Coast
Held by: The Ãoni
It may not look like it, but this artifact is actually a literal footprint left by the goddess Q'Tam'šmă herself. All too soon after losing her sons, Q'Tam'šmă decided 'to walk the lines of his skin' as she believed it would permit her to hear his voice and relive his touch, rather than merely embrace his body with the waves of her oceans. However, when she tried, the grief within her heart weighed so heavily, she sank back into the depths of the world.
This artifact is known, but is protected by the deadly confines of the Ãoni Coasts rocky water way, which many ships have been lost to in storms. The Ãoni, with their chanting magic protect this artifact well, and it only boosts the magic locked within their eons old sorcery of that is their sacred chants. For the Ãoni to lose claim to this artifact, would be the death of their species, as total annihilation would be the only way of securing it.
:Vojshā's Crown
Status: FOUND
Location: Deserts of Trótskarr
Held by: Acolytes of Vojshā
Fallen from her head almost instantly after she was birthed from VüƑ, Vojshā's crown is a known but well-hidden artifact. In fact, it is within the long twisting mountains that belong to a now ancient dried up, gigantic river. Vojshā's Crown is located in the depths of Trótskarr, surrounded by desert and no cities. Unlike the majority of known artifacts, the crown is inhabited by acolytes; those devoted to the cause of aiding the Goddess of the Veil in protecting her family. Although it should be said that they too, have no true idea of what bringing all the artifacts together would actually do. But the acolytes to keep the crown clean, and live inside of it to gain shelter from sand storms. They also keep the location a secret as best as possible as they wish peace, not bloodshed, and do not believe that the artifacts should be something to go to war for. If only the rest of Tam'nýer—a' felt that, rather than viewing the artifacts as a means to gain power and control
Sùrelï's Last Words:
Status: FOUND
Location: Sky-Coral Sea; Uwhang
Held by: The Empress of the Sky-Coral Sea
Almost as if the God of Language Sùrelï took after one of our earthly traditions of trying to speak beyond the grave through a will, Sùrelï's last words which are either of regret or love, but nonetheless pertaining to VüƑ were spoken with such emotion and force that as he died, they broke the very atoms of a tree, etching themselves into the bark. Although no one has deciphered the words, this great tree has since been cut down from the forests of the Emerald Isles and is kept deep within the jungle of the Sky-Coral Sea, supposedly under its seat of government; the Empress. Rumors say she hasn't died despite being extremely close to that of 10 Tam'nýer—a''n years, and her youth is as vibrant as a budding rose in the late of Spring.
:Khayar'l's Sword
Status: FOUND
Location: Püertagœ
Held by: The Püertagœn Senate
Where this stunning, seeming obelisk was found is knowledge not privy to the rest of the world as this artifact was actually seized during the invasion and occupation of डकईभर (Ḍakaībhara). It is believed to be none other than Khayar'l's Sword. While it is fractured and clearly missing pieces, if these pieces have been found it is not known to the ruling place that now 'owns' this wondrous artifact: Püertagœ.
That's right, after the invasion and take over of डकईभर (Ḍakaībhara), Püertagœ and the Sky-Coral Sea decided to rule this beautiful place in a combined effort, which has now become a kingdom in its own right and as well now refer to it as Fawzia-Kedet. The revered sword is now tucked safely away under the Senate House of
.Püertagœ which makes one wonder just how large the vault underneath the first ring is
Jn's Heart:
Status: FOUND
Location: Foot Continent
Held by: Zdjętzami
Sztwenī is the ancient monument encasing this most important artifact, and the race who hold 'ownership' to it are obvlious. However, that is not to say that they don't revere it and add their own understanding to it. It is revered as the Zdjętzami birthplace. The very location upon which their species came to life. If the legends are true, that means that within this sacred place, a God's body laid here, or at least the remnants thereof, and the mirzum who fed upon it transformed into the very first Zdjętzami.
Since it is such an important landmark, not just to this race but to all of Tam'nýer—a' (even if they do not yet realize), the Zdjętzami do not build near it. While it may seem abandoned and a relic of the past, the Zdjętzami do not build within 3,27.3 meters (1,080ft) of it due to them believing that they may contaminate it. Of course to the Zdjętzami, they only have faith in Bezăv, as their faith is monotheistic.
The reinforcement for this belief on contamination however, and a fervent desire to preserve the delicate 'balance' they have is because there is something much different about the Feet Continent as opposed to others. It hums. It should be noted that the closer you get to this monument the more you will feel this hum within you. If you were in pain, you will lose it, your muscles will ease. The air will become fresher, clearer, despite your desolate surroundings.
This is due to the 'Rondure' hidden beneath the surface and what the monument actually encases. While the Zdjętzami believe that it is their God Bezăv's anchor to this world, it is actually an artifact. In fact, other than Q'Tam'smă's Grief it is probably the most important artifact out there, and that's because it is actually Jn's Heart. (Sorry, Ṅkhya'jra, you named your continent wrong.) And if you are of keen eye, you might realize that the heart would plug the hole of Q'Tam'smă's Grief rather perfectly.